The H.A.C.K.E.R. Project

McDonald’s, a well-known fast-food restaurant in the United States, has recently announced that it will be ending the use of artificial intelligence (AI) at some of its restaurant locations. McDonald’s had “launched the [AI drive-through] tech through a partnership [made] with IBM in 2021” (Cerullo). The hope was that, by implementing AI into the drive-through ordering system, it would “create a more convenient and simplified ordering experience for its customers and restaurant teams as a part of its ‘Accelerating the Arches’ growth plan” (Tulfo). Essentially, when a customer would place an order through the drive-through at a participating location, they would be talking to a voice-recognition AI software that would record their order, instead of a human employee.

What Went Wrong?

Overall, it was found that “the technology [was] showing mixed results” when it came to processing customer orders (Cerullo). AI was implemented in the drive-through ordering systems “at 100 U.S. locations. And as with any new technology, there were mishaps that amused, and sometimes frustrated, customers” (Cerullo). Some customers had “reported that McDonald’s chatbot sometimes got even simple orders wrong”; there have been videos circulating around social media showing the AI technology mistakenly adding extra items to customer orders (Cerullo). In addition, the AI also “had issues interpreting different accents and dialects, which affected order accuracy” (Rogers).

What Will Change?

McDonald’s, likely as a result of these mishaps, has announced via “a memo sent to franchisees” that the AI technology- referred to as the “Automated Order Taker”- will “be shut off no later than July 26[th]” (Rogers). However, despite this setback, it appears that McDonald’s will still continue to experiment with using artificial intelligence according to multiple news outlets. In a statement received by CBS Moneywatch, a McDonald’s spokesperson stated that “‘the goal of the test was to determine if an automated voice ordering solution could simplify operations for crew and create a faster, improved experience for our fans’” and that McDonald’s still believes that there is “‘an opportunity to explore voice ordering solutions more broadly’” (Cerullo). CNBC reports that, in a statement received from McDonald’s, the restaurant chain “is not ruling out potential AI drive-thru plans in the future, even though it ended the IBM partnership” (Rogers). CNN reports that “McDonald’s says this is not the end of its AI efforts. It plans to ‘evaluate long-term, scalable solutions’ for voice-ordering by the end of 2024” (Tulfo). This is likely due to how many other “fast-food chains, including Chipotle, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, are testing bots in their kitchens and at cash registers to save on labor costs” (Cerullo).

Resources & Further Reading

Cerullo, Megan. “McDonald’s Ends AI Drive-thru Orders — for Now.” Www.cbsnews.com, CBS Interactive, Inc., 17 June 2024, www.cbsnews.com/news/mcdonalds-ends-ai-drive-thru-ordering/.

Rogers, Kate. “McDonald’s to End AI Drive-thru Test with IBM.” CNBC, CNBC LLC, 17 June 2024, www.cnbc.com/2024/06/17/mcdonalds-to-end-ibm-ai-drive-thru-test.html.

Tulfo, Erika. “McDonald’s Pulls AI Ordering from Drive-Thrus — for Now | CNN Business.” CNN, Cable News Network, 17 June 2024, www.cnn.com/2024/06/17/tech/mcdonalds-ai-drive-thru-program/index.html.